Page 44 of Her Rugged Guardian

Snorting, I shook my head once again. He must be hurting to stoop so low as to ask me to come back. “As I told you before. Not my thing any longer.”

“What exactly is your thing, man? You need to talk to someone, Jake. You can’t go around hating and avoiding the world for the rest of your life.”

“I don’t hate the world and I’m certainly not avoiding it.” Both were lies, although I hated myself more than anything or anyone. The truth was that I was still in rough shape even if the nightmares no longer occurred every night. I still thoughtabout what had happened on that dark night at least once every other day. Or what had happened to destroy my family. Both were pitch-black holes my mind fell into. Hey, it was improving. Before, I’d thought about the incident several times a day. A laugh threatened to leave my throat. I wasn’t certain who I was kidding or trying to prove my sanity to.

As I said, I was a terrible liar.

Just seeing the faces of several of the people in the diner had reminded me of the shit I’d heard them say for the first few months. The worst comments were always made when folks thought I was out of hearing range.

He really thought he was being a hero in that damn fire?

That likely cost the girl her life.

He’s to blame.

Just like what happened when he was younger.

Fuck. I couldn’t go down that road again. Why now? Because of his call? Somehow, I doubted it. I’d learned to ignore the shit but that didn’t mean the words hadn’t found a place deep in my soul. Still, I deserved them.

The rumble of a vehicle engine caught my attention. I stared down the single lane road, ready to drive anyone who just stopped by for a visit away. When I noticed a truck flying down at a high rate of speed, I stood. “Living my life, Shane. My way. I wish you good luck in finding some folks, but I’m not your man. I gotta go. It was good talking to you.”

“If you change your mind, you’re welcome back with open arms.”

“I won’t.”

I ended the call just as he was starting to refute my statement. Why was it that everyone seemed to know better about how I needed to live my life?

When the truck pulled up, hitting the brakes hard, gravel flew out from under the wheels, the dust preventing me from seeing who was behind the wheel. Whoever it was had a reckless streak in them. It kind of pissed me off. I moved off the porch, ready to give the visitor a piece of mind when the door was flung open, boots stepping out onto the gravel. Long dark hair was the second thing I noticed before one fired-up vixen stormed toward me, leaving the door to her truck open.

She stopped short a few feet away when she noticed me, her mouth twisting in frustration.

“Cinnamon Girl. What do you need?”

I sensed she was second guessing her stop but when I noticed a single tear trickling past her long lashes, an ache pulled at me, the need to protect her kicking in. Her mouth twisted, her eyes so glassy my heart thudded in my chest.

“What’s going on, Cassandra? Talk to me.”

“Is Moose here? I know at least he likes you and I thought maybe he came to find you.”

“No. Why would Moose be here?” I moved down the stairs and I’ll be damned if she didn’t back away, another tear falling from her other eye.

“Because the back door was open when I got home. I don’t know how that happened. I swear I locked it and I checked. I always check. You have to do that in DC because we have idiots roamingthe streets. It’s not a habit you can change. You know? I wasn’t that stupid.”

“Slow down. It’s going to be okay.”

“I can’t lose him, Jake. I just can’t. He was there for me during everything. He protected me and kept me from… He’s the only creature I can trust.” She finally either found the courage or additional anger kicked in and she glared me in the eyes. “Forget it. I’m sorry I bothered you.”

When she spun around, acting like she was going to leave, I lumbered forward, grabbing her arm. “Hold on, girl. You’re not making much sense. So Moose somehow got out the back door?”

“Yes. And don’t you dare tell me I should have allowed you to change all the locks. I know that now. I just…” She lifted her arms, dropping her head into her hands.

I sure wasn’t the best man to provide comfort to anyone, but the girl had a way of yanking on my heartstrings. I pulled her close, wrapping my other arm around her. I scanned the exterior, hoping I’d see him. I didn’t want to tell her that some of the rocks near the cliff gave way after the kind of rain we’d had. If Moose had gotten close, there was a chance he’d fallen to his death.

“Where could he go? Where? And why? He’s never run off. Never.” She pushed away but clung to me, darting her eyes back and forth across mine. “That’s not like him.”

It had been a long time since I’d had anyone look to me for answers. Or for help for that matter. I thought about where the pup might go. An idea popped into my mind. “I might know where he went. Why don’t you stay here. I’ll go look.”

“Not a chance, buster. This is my baby, my son, and I will help find him.” Her voice full of anger and defiance, she jerked away, taking long strides back to her truck.

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